The present invention relates to photographic apparatus in general, especially to still cameras, and more particularly to improvements in film transporting mechanisms for still cameras which use photographic roll film having a row of perforations, one for each film frame.
The copending application Ser. No. 419,728 of Engelsmann et al. discloses a still camera wherein the film is transported by a mechanism including a planetary transmission and the transport of film is terminated when a control lever is disengaged from a gear of the planetary transmission. Such disengagement takes place in response to pivoting of a second lever (hereinafter called displacing lever) which is free to strike against the control lever when the scanning arm of a pivotable and reciprocable feeler penetrates into an oncoming perforation of the film. Prior to penetration into an oncoming perforation, the scanning arm of the feeler bears against the front side of the moving film under the action of a relatively weak helical spring as well as under the action of a much stronger torsion spring which biases the displacing lever aginst a lug of the feeler. Such combined bias of the two springs is likely to damage the film, especially in the region of a perforation. The likelihood of damage is particularly pronounced if the scanning arm is to be entrained by moving film subsequent to penetration into an oncoming perforation whereby such entrainment results in disengagement of the displacing lever from the lug of the feeler and in pivoting of the control lever away from the aforementioned gear.